Nintendo

Super Mario Bros. Movie Defies Critics with Massive Opening Day Success



Super Mario Bros. Movie Defies Critics with Massive Opening Day Success

by jhd9012

50 Comments

  1. lttpfan13579

    Honestly, don’t listen to “the internet” for movies like this. I watched it yesterday and it was fully worth the money paid. Tons of fanservice, tons of inside jokes, obvious story line, great animation. The acting is fine, the plot is fine. Not stellar, but also not even close to bad.

    If you expected a new take on the Mario franchise, it wasn’t the movie that failed, it was your expectations. It’s a movie for kids 8-12 years old, whether physical age, or age at heart.

  2. PM_ME_YOUR__INIT__

    I don’t think I’ve seen a single Illumination movie because the trailers make them look so cringey. Minions just make me irrationally upset. I acknowledge I could totally be missing out on some good movies. So when I saw the low critic score I got pretty scared. Turns out I had nothing to worry about. It’s not perfect. The plot is 100% Miyamoto approved (as in, barebones). Nintendo has been careful to not expand Mario lore along with its other franchises like Zelda, so it’s fine for such a plot to exist.

  3. SuperToxin

    I read two different “critics” and they seemed baffled by the fact they sat down and a children’s movie started playing. Watch the trailer and see the movies yourself without outside opinions. I bet you’ll enjoy stuff more.

  4. thecostly

    A film critic with zero reverence for gaming would be missing out on so many aspects of this movie that make it so special, so I understand the low RT score. With that said, it is an absolute blast for fans, kids are going to love it, and it’s going to make a fortune. Bring on that sequel!

  5. Does anyone seriously think that there are any parents out there who told their 10 ten year old kids “sorry guys, we can’t go see the Mario movie because it got a 56% on rotten tomatoes”?

  6. D-Lee-Cali

    This movie was never going to be some insightful, well written commentary on the human condition or whatever would have scored it higher in the eyes of some film critics. This movie was always going to be the movie version of a roller coaster ride through Super Mario Land. Can’t wat to see it this weekend.

  7. Nuclear_Farts

    It’s a fun movie that I won’t remember a year from now. Completely harmless and the kids loved it.

  8. linguotgr

    Shocker. A movie that was designed to be crowd pleasing and not really chase awards is pleasing crowds, but probably won’t win major awards.

    Critics aren’t wrong to say this isn’t some kind of high art film, and sites like RT aren’t wrong for showing that critics are split. Critics review things they aren’t the target audience for, and audiences tend to be more self-filtering. Both numbers are needed for the complete story. The film is technically competent, nothing ground breaking, but plays to something people wanted to see on a big screen for decades. That’s what the scores tell us.

    And that’s not defying critics, either. I haven’t seen any critic say “this is bad and will flop”. They are saying “I didn’t like this because I want something more from film”. Which isn’t a bad opinion to have.

  9. I enjoyed it so much. It’s a Mario movie. Even the games have paper thin plots but are a joy. So many little Easter eggs and fun stuff throughout the film. I really enjoyed it!!

  10. supernintendo128

    It’s gonna be the first film to gross one-marillion dollars

  11. Dirty_Virmling

    I’m pretty sure every critic who gave it a negative review would also have told you it will be a massive financial success.

  12. That’s not news.

    It could literally be 3 hours of Bowser taking a shit and it would sell well.

  13. fireflydrake

    It wasn’t a great movie, but it was a fun movie. I hope it does well and encourages Nintendo to continue exploring the possibilities of more cinematic stuff! Jack Black absolutely nailed it as Bowser, haha.

  14. nico_el_chico

    “Defies critics” lmao not a single critic doubted that it would be a massive hit. It’s Mario. Everyone understood it would make a bajillion dollars. You losers are overdosing on copium.

  15. 40classicsfeatJim

    Lol it’s fucking mario, it’s gonna be a success, and kids will tell their friends to see and bam word of mouth.

  16. milkstrike

    I swear marketing/advertising classes should be mandatory so we don’t get so many fucking stupid articles like this

  17. AuthorHarrisonKing

    Guys, you do NOT need to be so defensive over this movie. Critics aren’t bad people because they didn’t like the movie adaptation of your favorite game series.

  18. Trickster174

    In my 30s. A group of my friends and I saw the movie last night and loved it. Even my wife who barely plays games really had a blast. I don’t know what critics were expecting, but the movie is fun as hell.

  19. Thoushaltdenycheese

    Always remember *The Waterboy* holds a 33% and that tells you everything you need to know about RT. That movie is Sandler at his absolutely top, and the whole movie is gold.

  20. Papa-pwn

    My wife and I went to an afternoon showing yesterday. It’s such a fun movie. The voice acting was better than I expected, with some of the choices(Bowser, Kamek) downright impressing me. The music was excellent, especially with the musical references scattered about, and the animation was beautiful.

    Of course, the story wasn’t some grand tale for the ages but it’s _Mario_. We got what we expected and more.

    We both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and already agreed we’ll likely go see it again!

  21. Grimey_Rick

    those reviews were bs. the movie was solid. not the best i’ve ever seen, but a great movie rendition of the games with a lot for fans. Seems some of the people reviewing were completely out of touch with what Super Mario Bros. is

  22. MamaDeloris

    “Defies critics”

    Right, because all those reviews were praying this movie fails.

  23. bigfuzzydog

    Lets be real, we all know that even if this movie is hot garbage all us man-children are gonna go see it anyway

  24. GrendelNightmares

    It’s a movie about MARIO. At this point he’s practically in the same tier of fame as Jesus fucking Christ. I don’t think anyone was holding their breath to see what the New York Times thinks about the movie lmao

  25. professorwormb0g

    This isn’t a movie for film affectionados.

    It’s a movie made for

    1. Long time fans of Mario/Nintendo.
    2. Kids.

    I love great unique films with interesting plots and character development.

    But I also am a gamer who has been playing Mario since I was 3 years old on the NES and deeply loves and cares about this franchise, it’s characters, it’s music, world, etc. Miyamoto did wonderful and gave his fans something that was a lot of fun to watch. That’s what this was supposed to be. Fun. Just like the games. I had a lot of fun watching it. I love to vibe out when playing Mario. Appreciate the art, the music, the world, etc. Find the secrets and easter eggs. References to past games.

    Just like the games I could do all that in the movie and thus…. I had a lot of fun. It’s not any deeper than that.

    If you know anything about Shigeru Miyamoto, you know he is focused on having fun first. Story is a vehicle for fun gameplay. Similarly, the story in this movie was a vehicle for a fun movie.

    Peace.

  26. supernovacarpetbomb

    It is a really fun movie. It isn’t a masterpiece that will make me cry like Your Name, but it is fun and an enjoyable ride. Also the soundtrack is oddly a banger lol.

  27. DarkSideNS

    My theater was a sold out IMAX. Many people in some kind of Mario outfit, or bowser outfit etc.

    When the movie ended, the entire audience clapped and cheered for over a full minute.

    It was awesome!

  28. TheShweeb

    Critics didn’t even particularly dislike the movie! Basically all of the ones that I’ve actually read in-depth have essentially said “yeah it’s alright! It’s cute, fun, nothing special but not bad”. Rotten Tomatoes just kinda arbitrarily sorted some of them as “fresh” and others as “rotten” because those are the only two points on their scale.

  29. jawsomesauce

    I’m 38 and loved every minute of this. It’s a 100% homage to the entire Mario franchise and beyond. I can’t wait to stream/own it so I can pause and rewatch to catch more of the references and Easter eggs, because they are everywhere.

  30. SercretOwl

    I had an immense amount of fun, which is the same reason I’ve played Mario games for nearly my entire life. It may not be deep but it more than achieved it’s goal

    Would have appreciated a few less obvious irl needle-drops, although it didn’t detract much. The Beastie Boys one did work for me lol

  31. DyingDrillWizard

    I saw it last night and it was great!

  32. Do people actually pay attention to Critic scores? I always look at audience. I have terrible taste, why would I care what the critics like?

  33. Alright_doityourway

    Critic don’t know jack shit.
    Like with Godzilla king of monster, critic said too much Godzilla but that’s the whole point of the movie!!

  34. TheSlipSlapDangler

    Critics can eat ass on this one. Can’t we just have a fun family “popcorn” movie???

  35. mathteacher85

    Holy moly, this is a movie made for Mario fans. They knocked it out of the park as far as I’m concerned.

    Brought my kids to see it, it was a blast for us all!

  36. ericfoster2003

    The critics could have said it was just as bad as the 1993 film, and I would still be taking my daughter to see this movie. There isn’t a parent out there that would read the reviews and deny their kid the opportunity to go see it because some blogger thought it wasn’t on par with Citizen Kane.

  37. MudAdvanced4355

    Took my kids to see it today. It was good.

  38. melancholanie

    it’s arguably the most well known IP. every parent is bringing their kids to see it.

  39. Gaflinnigus_Flumming

    I just saw it tonight.
    I enjoyed it.
    Critics are dumb.
    >!Jack Black should’ve been given three extra minutes to sing his goddamn heart out and whoever allowed that lum to exist and preach nihilist dogma to children is a threat to humanity, that movie was wildin lol!<

  40. localdavid

    Why do people always say “defy” critics as if the critics are an authoritian regime. They just gave their opinions of a movie and the general public happens to disagree

  41. ItsStaaaaaaaaang

    Didn’t critics give it middling reviews? When has a movie being average af stopped it raking in money?

  42. Ninclemdo

    The online discourse for movie is like fast food. I know it’s not great, but it’s fine for what it is and even enjoyable. I don’t need people to tell me why it’s bad.

  43. Emptyking101

    I’m a huge Nintendo fan and I loved it, does it have a deep plot? No but we all know we don’t play Mario games for the story. Loved the references and bowser singing was pretty funny.

  44. PinkSockss

    My favorite critic review said that “Mario and Luigi’s relationship is forced” and it’s like, your goofy ass forgot they were brothers?

  45. doubtful_blue_box

    This movie was great! I can see how you would be bored if you’re an adult critic who has not played Mario games. But if you have, there were SO MANY visual jokes referencing beloved parts of all the past games. They used the N64 rainbow road shortcut!!! No critics are picking up on that

  46. JSpencer94

    I keep seeing comments about fully grown adults clapping and cheering at the end of the movie, I think I’d actually die of secondhand embarrassment if I saw that, how cringeworthy

  47. DabberDan42o

    It’s a good movie. Forget the haters.

  48. nutsack133

    I don’t know how that movie only got 54% on rotten tomatoes. It was a blast and was everything I could have wanted out of a Mario movie. The animation was brilliant, the voice acting was top notch, and the entire movie was so faithful to the source material while not just repeating it. Took my niece and nephew to see it yesterday and we all loved it. For anyone who plays or played Mario games, which is pretty much anyone 50 or under, that was a hell of a fun ride. If I hadn’t looked at rotten tomatoes before seeing the movie and you asked me what score it got at the end I would have probably guessed 93 or something. Nintendo knocked it out of the park with this movie.

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